Monday, 18 April 2016

So we've only gone and done it... and I don't know about you but my overall feeling as the final whistle blew on Saturday was one of relief.
Relief that it was all over and we didn't have to worry about ridiculous goal difference swings any more and relief that we don't have to worry about what might have happened if Operation Bounceback had failed.
Fears of part-time football, massive budget cuts, no academy and the job losses which go along with that, the manager and players leaving can all be put to one side.
Seeing several staff members sipping a celebratory pint and saying "at least I've still got a job" put it all into perspective.
But we can forget all that and look forward with optimism knowing that our football club is back on a more secure financial footing, in good hands with the board of directors with the club at heart, a terrific manager and a squad of players who actually give a toss.
The scenes at the final whistle and in the bar afterwards were fantastic and will stay in the memory for a long time.
Supporters got their pitch invasion without anyone trying to stop them, and seeing players leading the singing and serving the drinks later on was fantastic.
A club united - and that has been the key to it all. The disconnect which had been growing between fans and players over the last few seasons was a drip, drip, drip which had a big say in what happened last season.
But enough about that lot. Now we have a squad of players and a manager who the fans want to associate themselves with, players who obviously get on well and enjoy playing together and who the supporters want to come and watch and want to get behind.
What this manager and squad have achieved is phenomenal. To be the first club in 26 years to go back up straightaway as champions is remarkable - considering that this league is totally transformed from the one which Darlington won in 1990 and Lincoln did before them.
Now it is packed with former league clubs like Grimsby, Tranmere and Wrexham who attract bigger crowds than we do and spend more money than we do.
Back in 1990 there weren't many full-time clubs or ex-league sides as automatic promotion and relegation had only just been introduced back then, now there are lots of both in the league.
You also have to consider where we were last May. A mess, basically.
Johnson had seen the previous squad at first hand and got rid of them all as soon as he could (some had to stay a bit longer than Gary wanted them to as they had contracts...).
Only the untarnished Asa Hall is now left of the senior players and having brought in 17 or 18 players over the summer it could have gone either way.
I have to admit my pre-season thoughts were play-offs at best as the squad we had was such an unknown quantity.
I highly doubt that any team has ever gone on to win a league having fielded 11 debutants in the opening game of the season. It's quite ridiculous really.
No-one knew how it work out, how these players would gel together - but now we know we needn't have worried. Most wins, most points, most goals scored and fewest conceded. No arguing with that.
They have coped superbly with the pressure of knowing that they were playing for the future of the football club as we know it.
It was never sugar-coated. Gary Johnson mentioned it regularly in interviews and the mantra never changed - we have to win this league. It was never hidden, but embraced by him and the squad superbly and they will never be forgotten.
The focal point of the team has been the spine, starting with Dillon Phillips in goal. I have never known a loan player embrace a club like he has. He has been fantastic - a credit to himself and to Charlton Athletic.
Even after his injury, he was always there backing his squad and who was right at the forefront of the celebrations post-match? Yes, Dillon was and I wouldn't rule him out for a return next season.
Then you have Aaron Downes, a fantastic captain on and off the field - hope he comes back to lead us in the League - and Daniel Parslow, Mr Consistent and my player of the season. I just love the bloke... and I can't stop singing his song. All together now... We've got Parslow... No? Ok then.
Kyle Storer, our midfield dynamo who has taken on more responsibility after Downes left, and next to him Harry Pell - our driving force and the real heartbeat of the dressing room.
Pelly sums everything up for me. He is a fantastic player but also he epitomises the passion and connect with the supporters. You can tell how much he loves playing for the club and alongside his team-mates.
Then there is Danny Wright. I remember there being a lot of doubters when he was signed, but 21 goals in 42 league games has shut them up and he deserves a shot at League football.
That's not to forget the rest of them. Dan Holman's 14 goals in 16 games, Jack Munns' assists and Halifax hat-trick, Billy Waters' Autumn run of goalscoring form, Asa Hall's two crucial late winners, Amari Morgan-Smith's pace and power and early-season goals, James Dayton's free-kicks and assists, Rob Dickie's set-piece goals and Rolls-Royce defending, Jack Barthram and George McLennan bombing up and down the flanks, and the contributions of Jonathan Flatt, James Rowe, Cameron Burgess and Jordan Cranston.
Heroes all.
I am certain most of them will be with us again next season, Gary has already said he wants to take them up to the next level and with them we have a great nucleus for League Two.
I am confident that we can have a good go at League Two. I am not going to come out and say we will go straight through it as there will still be some big clubs in there with big budgets, but we will be competitive.
We have something like this:Goalkeepers: Kitscha, LovettDefenders: Barthram, McLennan, Downes, Parslow, Cranston*Midfielders: Pell*, Storer, Hall, Rowe, Munns, DaytonStrikers: Wright, Holman, Morgan-Smith, Waters
That's assuming loanees like Phillips, Flatt, Dickie and Burgess return to their clubs, but I can definitely see Gary trying to get Phillips and Dickie back again - at least.
So he will need a few more to come in, as of course next season we can have seven substitutes and so we will need a slightly bigger squad.
I am confused, I admit, about whether Omari Sterling-James and Jordan Wynter are still officially CTFC players now or not, but we all know they won't be in a few weeks.
Decisions also have to be made on Bobbie Dale, who was not among the raft told last January they weren't getting a new contract, ans also on the second-year scholars we saw in the FA Trophy games - the likes of Niall Rowe, Jordan Lymn, Karnell Chambers, Sam Mendes, Alex Dinsmore, Lewis Thompson and co.
So where will Gary be looking to strengthen?
Obviously it depends on whether everyone stays - but I get the impression that if Gary dangles a contract under their noses it won't be a tough decision for them.
He will need a goalkeeper - and we know who the number one choice is. Dillon is up for it too if you read a recent Twitter exchange I had with him - but there will be a list of others already from the scouting branch of Johnson Brothers plc if it doesn't work out.
A centre half or two, a right back to challenge Jack Barthram, a left-footed wide man, maybe another forward... just a few suggestions for the shopping list.
But we can look forward to League Two now - I for one am in the position of actually relishing the idea of going to Mansfield, Hartlepool, Carlisle and Newport.
There are three dates I am really looking forward to already - Gary's return to Yeovil, and a meeting with two ex CTFC managers, Martin Allen and Mark Yates when we play Barnet and Crawley. Should be fun!
But first we have two games left, and it will be nice to watch them with no stress at all, no worries about the result - although wouldn't it be great to win them both and get to 101 points?
It's no drama if we don't, and we can just enjoy these two games and have another party on the 30th when we get the trophy - after the relief of last Saturday, I for one will really enjoy that day.
I have been lucky enough to see four CTFC championship wins, and they have all been special.
Johnson had a dream. And it came true.